A great blue heron wades on the South Branch Kishwaukee River in DeKalb, Illinois, September 2006.

The Kishwaukee River flows from Woodstock, Illinois to Rockford, Illinois where it is a tributary to the Rock River. The river begins as a small wetland stream off Route 47, just south of the Route 14 intersection in Woodstock. It meanders across northern Illinois to the Rock River, south of Rockford. This part of the river is known as the North Branch or the Main Branch. This stretch of stream has an average width of 50 feet (15 m) but where the river flows past the Boone County line it becomes both wider and deeper.

The South Branch of the Kishwaukee River originates high upon the Cropsey Moraine, just north of Shabbona. The river flows north to Genoa where it then turns westward and then flows north-northwest and joins the North Branch near Cherry Valley. The South Branch cuts across moraines and part of the river bed is the plain of an ancient lake. The South Branch's average width is 55 feet (17 m).

The Kishwaukee River drains land in southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois. In Illinois its watershed includes McHenry, Boone, Kane, DeKalb, Ogle, and Winnebago Counties. The entire watershed includes 1,257 square miles (3,256 km2) of land, which includes farmlands, prairies, savanna, wetlands, sloughs and forests. However the vast majority of the Kishwaukee watershed is agricultural in use. Crop lands occupy a full two thirds of the watershed's surface area.

The Kishwaukee has been used by humans for thousands of years. The Native Americans were the first to use it to transport goods for trade. The name Kishwaukee is derived from the Potowatomi word meaning the "river of the sycamore." The Potowatomi used the large sycamore trees in the river valley for dugout canoes. Incidentally the river demarks the northern most natural range of the sycamore tree.[2]

Archaeological data for the Kishwaukee River basin shows that the region has been continuously inhabited for the last 12,000 years. A total of 560 archaeological sites have been recorded in the Kishwaukee area and they range in age from Paleo-Indian (10,000 BCE) to the Post-World War II industrial period. <citation needed>

It was during the waning of the Ice Age that the first Native Americans began to arrive in Illinois. Settlement naturally migrated along the area's rivers and streams and the Kish was no exception. The first archaeological investigations of the region were mound sites. Near the mouth of the Kishwaukee, not too far from the Rock River valley are several mound sites from the Mississippian period, around 900 CE or the Upper Mississippian period around 1400 CE. No archaeological sites have been identified from the Native American period, which is generally said to be around 1650. Despite this, it is known that several groups occupied the area during that time and the Mascouten were in the Kishwaukee region at the time of the first contact with Europeans, c. 1655. Over the ensuing 150 years the area was laid claim to by various Miami-speaking tribes and the Potawatomi. By 1840 all the Native American groups had been moved westward, to reservation lands.[citation needed]

On Wednesday April 20, 1988 the employees of Lincoln Land Hog Farm, north of Sycamore, were working on a pipe on the farm's retention pond. The berm wall gave way allowing two million gallons of hog waste to spill into the Kishwaukee River. The result, aquatic life downstream was utterly vanquished. The Illinois Department of Conservation (IDOC) stated that 37.2 miles (59.9 km) of the river were affected and an estimated 70,000 fish were killed along with aquatic plants, insects, clams and crustaceans.[3]

This, however was not the first fish kill along the Kishwaukee and the city of DeKalb has been the location of more than half of the fish kills since 1954. Of the 19 documented fish kills since that year, 11 of them have occurred within DeKalb city limits. Another well documented fish kill along the Kishwaukee was in 1984. According to IDOC reports the 1984 fish kill and a number of others were in direct correlation with heavy canning activities at the Del Monte canning facility that once operated on Taylor Street in DeKalb. The 1984 fish kill affected a portion of the river from a bend north of Lucinda Avenue, near Annie's Woods to Lincoln Highway. IDOC gathered evidence that proved a faulty pipe at Del Monte was responsible for this particular fish kill. Del Monte cut the state a check for the value of lost fish and took steps to prevent a similar mishap after they found out they were culpable.[3]

The Kishwaukee River has been exploited, negatively and positively, by humans for thousands of years. One of its more colorful interactions in the past occurred in the city of DeKalb and surrounds the story of Northern Illinois University locating in that city.

In 1893 a new Illinois governor took office, John P. Altgeld. Altgeld had run on a platform which included adding more teacher colleges to the state, specifically in northern Illinois. Altgeld, a Democrat, faced considerable opposition to his plan in the Republican controlled Illinois General Assembly. In order to spur the plan ahead Clinton Rosette, the publisher of the local DeKalb newspaper began to put pressure on Altgeld to fulfill his promises. Then, Isaac Ellwood tossed his hat into the foray. The barbed wire baron used his influence, as a Republican, to press the state legislature, soon a bill was drafted and introduced to build a state teacher's college somewhere in northern Illinois.

As could be imagined many communities were vying for the new college after the bill became law on May 22, 1895. Delegates from Rockford, Freeport, Oregon, Dixon, Fulton and Polo began lobbying the selection committee for the new college to come to their towns. Every one of the communities in the running for the new college was a river town. Rockford, Oregon and Polo each had the scenic Rock River as inticement for the new college. Fulton had the Mississippi River. But DeKalb had only the Kishwaukee River, practically a creek compared to the Rock and, of course, the Mississippi. In July 1895 the selection committee, which included Judge A.A. Goodrich of Chicago, visited each of the communities in the running.

Ellwood noticed how impressed the committee was with the Rock River so he arranged for DeKalb to be the last community visited. The selection committee decided to take a weekend to rest and visit DeKalb on a Monday. The city had a weekend to prepare. What happened next could be described as deceit, skulduggery, or pulling the wool over.

Julys in northern Illinois are often hot and dry and the Kishwaukee River is little more than a trickle at times, at the least its water levels are extremely low. DeKalb had a plan though. The residents of the city agreed to go without water for the weekend and two dams were quickly constructed on the Kishwaukee. Nearly every member of the community turned out to help dredge mud in key locations and replace it with gravel and pebbles.

The selection committee began their inspection tour on Monday morning. As the committee and Ellwood crossed the bridge over what became Lincoln Highway the dam was released giving the impression of a full, scenic river. Just as the committee crossed the bridge a lone fisherman in his boat near the bridge happened to catch a rather large fish in plain sight of the committee. Impressed, the committee also took note of a stringer of large fish attached to the boat. Ellwood completed the ruse, remarking, "The Kish has always provided us with a good supply of fish."

Of course, the other communities trying to attract what would become Northern Illinois University were not so impressed. A July 1895 editorial in the Oregon Republican complained, "Just where this fish came from is unknown, but it looked haggard and footsore, like it had tramped a long distance. There is some talk of stocking the Kish with salt-cured cod. They stand the pressure all right in either a wet or dry season." The committee paid it no mind and DeKalb was accepted as a finalist to be the host site for the new college. On July 15 each of the finalist communities made their pitch to Goodrich in Chicago.

If the river was not enough other prominent DeKalbians offered up their own incentives for the college to come to the small city of 5,000. Jacob Haish offered to donate $100,000 to the college library and Ellwood offered a $30,000 donation to build housing adjacent to the campus. Joseph Glidden, another of the barbed wire barons of DeKalb, offered to donate 70 acres (280,000 m2) of land for the college. The city of DeKalb offered sewer, water and road connections.

On Oct. 1, 1895 news reached DeKalb that it had been selected as the site for the new college. A celebration exploded with fireworks and factory horns blaring and flags waving from nearly every structure.[4]

A mid September thunderstorm rolls into DeKalb over the Kishwaukee River.

The United States Geological Survey maintains four monitoring stations, in cooperation with National Weather Service, along the Kishwaukee River and has extensive data on low records and high crests and other information that is hydrologically pertinent. The four stations are in DeKalb, Fairdale, Belvidere and Perryville Road in Rockford. The DeKalb and Fairdale stations are along the South Branch Kishwaukee while the other two are both along the main branch. Flood stages vary slightly at each of the monitoring stations. At DeKalb flood stage is 10 feet (3 m) with moderate flood stage at 11 and major set at 12.5 feet (3.8 m). In Belvidere major flood stage is at 12 feet (4 m), while moderate is at 10 and flood stage is at nine feet. In Perryville, near the mouth of the Kishwaukee, flood stage is 12 feet (4 m), moderate flood stage is 18 and major flood stage is 22 feet (7 m).[5]

On August 24, 2007, the Kishwaukee River at DeKalb, Illinois crested at 15.27 feet (all time record 15.8 ft) causing major flooding. This was only the second time the river rose above 15 feet (5 m) since the level of the river has been recorded.[7]

Much of the region around the Kishwaukee was shaped by glaciation. Glaciers left moraines, subglacial channels, terraces, outwash fans, valley train deposits and bedrock highs throughout the watershed. End moraines mark the western boundary of the Wisconsinian glaciation. Several natural areas and a quarry also highlight the geology of the watershed. The Flora Prairie Nature Preserve in Boone County has dolomite outcroppings and the Harvard West Geologic Area in McHenry County has an example of pitted outwash plain. The Harvard East Geologic Area has an example of a moraine protruding down a valley.[9]

Early citizens of DeKalb County also noticed surface boulders dotting the area. Rounded and granite, these boulder ranged in size from a cannonball to giant rocks weighing more than a ton. These boulders were dubbed "hard heads" by the locals and were used in the underpinning of barns and for the stoning of wells. The glaciation was responsible for these boulders as well. Two major ice sheets advanced over the Kishwaukee basin in its past. The first, the Illinoian covered the area 300,000 to 125,000 years ago. Though the Illinoian covered the entire area evidence of the coverage is found only in a few sediments at the surface in select sites. The reason for this is the second ice sheet, the Wisconsinan advanced over the area 25,000 to 13,500 years ago and covered over most of the prior glacial deposits.[10]

The end moraines that mark where the glacial margin once stood. One of the more visible of these formations is the Marengo Moraine which is a north-south moraine in western McHenry County which extends southwest across northwestern Kane County. The ridge is named after the town of Marengo, located on the moraine. North of the Marengo Moraine and to the west of the North Branch Kishwaukee River is a deep depression, or notch, across the Marengo Moraine. The depression is a subglacial channel, easily differentiated from a valley by the lack of rivers and streams along its bottom. The channel once carried meltwater from under and in front of the glacier when it was depositing its moraine.[10]

As a "Class A" stream fish in the Kishwaukee thrive in a sediment free environment. Class A is denoted by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR), the IDNR samples fish populations at stream sites throughout the state. Streams and rivers are then classified based upon the presence of pollution and silt intolerant species of fish. A designation of Class A describes a stream where a significant number of the species of fish are silt intolerant. It identifies a unique aquatic resource and ecosystem which is comparable to a stream with no human interference in its history.[11]

Invasive species continue to be a problem in the Kishwaukee River Basin. 21% of the area's plants have been introduced as foreign species to the area and have since become "naturalized." Some of these plants include garlic mustard, purple loosestrife and Canada thistle. Canada thistle has persisted in the region since as early as 1922 when McHenry County started showing concern. "The county has its regular thistle commissioners and they in turn have been authorized to engage scores of assistants to aid in doing away with these pests ... If the land owner refuses to cut them down at the lawful time, the commissioner simply hires a man [at $3 to $4 a day] to do the work and reports the transaction and makes a bill which is placed against the land at the coming tax paying season", McHenry County officials were recorded as saying at the time.[10]

The vegetation that dots the Kishwaukee Basin today is but a fraction of what it once was. In 1820, before European colonization, around 74% of the Kishwaukee River area was covered with forest, the other 26% was prairie. The forests were varied, savanna, blacksoil and gravel prairies were included in the 74%, as well as various wetlands. Early maps show that the major vegetation type in the eastern part of the area was savanna with that giving way to forest in the west. Toward the southwest the land became flatter and dominated by prairie thanks to few natural barriers for wildfires. During those years before Europeans arrived wetlands covered 31% of McHenry, 21% of Boone, 14% of Winnebago and 4% of DeKalb counties. By 1997 those numbers had dwindled. McHenry County still had the highest percentage of wetlands, at 6.2% and DeKalb County still had the least at 1.0%[10]

A muskrat moves through the waters of the Kishwaukee River. Muskrat are one of many mammals to be found in and around the river.

74% of the state's mammal species are "likely to occur" in the Kishwaukee River Basin. Rabbit, woodchuck and skunk are all common along the river. The once common martin and prairie wolf no longer occur in the area. White-tailed deer are numerous as they are over much of the state of Illinois. One of the smallest and fiercest mammals in Illinois is the shrew. Shrew will not hesitate to go after prey twice its size and four of the state's six shrew species can be found around the Kishwaukee River. Though none of the shrew species are endangered the tiny pygmy shrew has been called the "rarest shrew in Illinois." They have been collected along the Kishwaukee and their abundance suggests they may be more common than previously assumed.[10]

Before 1987 the IDNR's records show no signs of river otter in the Kishwaukee River. The reason was that the Kishwaukee and its tributaries wandered through prairies with little or no tree cover. It was only once the prairies were farmed that trees began to thrive along the shores of the river, creating ideal habitat for river otters. Today the Kishwaukee provides enough food, water, shelter and space for river otters to inhabit it.[11]

By 1997 the river otter had been sighted along the South Branch Kishwaukee River. In addition to tree cover river otters find ideal habitat in northern Illinois when it is isolated from the main river channel, has extensive vegetation, open water in winter, good water quality, suitable den sites and minimal human disturbance.[10]

Twelve amphibian and 21 reptile species can be found along the river. That represents 30% of the amphibians and 34% of reptiles found in Illinois. Although, there are not currently any endangered or threatened reptile or amphibian species the river basin was at one time home to the state-endangered eastern Massasauga.[10]

The Kishwaukee's bird population is not atypical for the area, which is primarily agricultural. Of the 299 species of bird that regularly occur in Illinois at least 262 of them can be found along and around the Kishwaukee River. Around 135 species have bred in and around the Kishwaukee River at some time or another. The wetlands that remain along the Kishwaukee are some of the most desirable habitat for avian species. Exner Marsh and Kloemphen Marsh, both in McHenry County have had several rookeries of great blue heron, pied-billed grebe, king rail, common gallinule, veery the state-endangered yellow-headed blackbird, the state-endangered osprey, and the state-threatened least bittern. [10]

In Boone County the Boone County Conservation District maintains Kishwaukee Bottoms. The Bottoms encompass several individual conservation areas. Anderson Bend, Distillery and LIB are all three located along the Kishwaukee River west of Belvidere. The LIB entrance is located 2.5 miles (4.0 km) west of Belvidere.[2]

The areas that are part of Kishwaukee Bottoms lie along the banks of the river and thus host typical flora and fauna of northern Illinois river bottom. Silver maple, sycamore and willow trees populate the shores of the river. These species dominate because of adaptations which allow them to withstand seasonal flooding. Lower areas in the Bottoms are sprinkled with wetlands that are populated by myriad aquatic species including turtles, frogs and beaver. Water fowl and wading birds are common throughout the marsh as well as along much of the Kishwaukee River itself.[2]

In all Kishwaukee Bottoms contains 547 acres (2.2 km2) of wild land which contains little development. Hiking and skiing trails total about 7.6 miles (12.2 km) and wind through prairies, woodlands, and wetlands.[2]

The DeKalb County Forest Preserve District operates a number of forest preserves along the Kishwaukee River. MacQueen Forest Preserve and 300-acre (1.2 km2) Potawatomi Forest Preserve are adjacent and straddle the north side of the bank of South Branch while just across the stream, on the banks' south side, is the nearly 600-acre (2.4 km2) preserve set aside by the state. In all, the area of MacQueen and Potawatomi preserves encompasses more than 900 acres (3.6 km2) and 3.2 miles (5.1 km) of the Kishwaukee River, which is not only set aside for public use but actively being conserved and monitored.[14]

The Kishwaukee River Ecosystem Partnership, founded in 1996, is an organization whose purpose is the continued preservation of the river's natural resources.

Friends of the Kishwaukee River, founded in 2012, is a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote and enhance good stewardship of the river and the surrounding lands by restoring and preserving its natural character, encouraging safe and responsible recreation, protecting its watershed from degradation, and increasing our community’s appreciation of its natural beauty.

The Kishwaukee watershed is one of the three highest quality river systems in Illinois. Over sixty-five miles of the Piscasaw, Rush Creek, and the main branch of the Kishwaukee are class "A" streams.[citation needed]

Local lore reports sightings of the Indian of the Lake. This Blackhawk tribesman travels by canoe and has been known to appear near the banks in the early morning hours.[citation needed]